12Marques Colston WR

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Saints' Marques Colston to make $3.8 million in salary, bonuses

by Igor Mello | CBSSports.com

Marques Colston's restructured deal with the Saints will save the team $3.2 million this season. He will make $3.8 million in salary and bonuses, per Mike Triplett of ESPN on Wednesday. He was set to make $6.9 million.

The Saints fell from 11-5 in 2013 to 7-9 last year, and WR Marques Colston blames an offseason change for the dropoff.

Appearing on a radio show with Ron Jaworski, Colston pinpointed the Saints' 2014 problems on the loss of RB Darren Sproles.

"When you lose a guy that has produced at that high of a level and don't have an immediate replacement planned for him, you're going to struggle at times when those crucial situations," Colston said. "When you know exactly the matchup you're going to get, the look you're going to get and what you're going to get out of that player--when you don't have that, and it's kind of an unknown, it kind of makes game planning that more difficult."

Colston, who had 59 catches for 902 receiving yards and five touchdowns in 2014, is expecting New Orleans to approach him about the pay cut and he is willing to do so to stay with the franchise. He is in the middle of a five-year, $36 million contract, which expires at the end of the 2016 season.

Colston has a cap number of $9.7 million in the upcoming season and $10.5 million in 2016.

Saints wideout Marques Colston, who turns 32 in June, is scheduled to make $6.9 million in 2015 with a cap hit of $9.7 million. The New Orleans Times-Picayune says the team likely wants Colston back, but not at that price.

He could be cut if he does not accept a lower salary. Colston played in every game this season, catching 59 passes for 902 yards and five touchdowns. He struggled to separate from man coverage, and his role diminished with the emergence of rookie Brandin Cooks and second-year pro Kenny Stills.